Window runway or channel



Oct. 30, 1934. J. s. REID wmnow RUNWAY 0R CHANNEL Filed April 19. 1933 INVENTOR James 5. Re/b" ATTORNEY Patented Oct. 30,. 1934 UNITED STATES WINDOW RUNWAY OR CHANNEL James S. Reid, Shaker Heights, Ohio, assignor to The Reid Products Company, Cleveland, Ohio,

a corporation of Ohio Application April 19, 1933, Serial No. 666,863

16 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in window runways or window channel and more particularly, in runways or channel especially adapted for use with windows having their upper front comer. portions cut-away or removed, such as the front windows of many present day automobiles.

- The Windshields of suchautomobiles are rearwardly inclined and by cutting-away the upper front corner portions of the front windows of such automobiles, the front edges of the top portions of such windows can be given a rearward inclination corresponding to that of said windshields, with consequent improvement in the appearance of said windows.

To properly guide and support the vertically movable rear edge portions of such windows and the vertically movable front edge portions of the bottom parts of said windows, standard form window channel, having window-engaging-side walls 20 of uniform and regular depth, is satisfactory, but to properly guide and support the inclined front edge portions of the top parts of such windows, which edge portions move at an angle to the vertical, special window channel is necessary, namely, channel having side walls which not only are of greater depth than the side walls of the standard form channel but which also are of varying depth, all as will be readily understood and as will hereinaftermore fully appear.

The general object, therefore, of the present invention is the provision of standard form window channel which is suitable, without modification thereof or additions thereto, for properly guiding and supporting the vertically movable edge portions of such windows, and the provi- 'sion of suitable supplemental side walls for supplying certain portions or sections of said standard form channel with such additions thereto as to make such portions or sections suitable for 40 properly guiding and supporting the inclined front edge portions of the top parts of such windows.

A more specific object of the present invention is the provision of standard form window channel and supplemental side walls for certain portions orsections thereof, which channel and which supplemental side walls are of simple and inexpensive construction, neat and pleasing in appearance, strong, durable and eflicient in use, and of such character that association of said supplemental side walls and certain portions or sections of said channel can be easily, quickly, neatly and conveniently effected.

Further objects of the present invention are in part obvious and in part will appear more in detafl hereinafter.

The present invention will be readily understood from the following description of one embodiment thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawing in which Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a portion of the body of a present day automobile, said body having installed in the door thereof standard form window channel with a portion or section thereof provided with supplemental side walls to enable said portion or section to properly guide and support the inclinedfront edge portion of the top part of the vertically movable window with which said door is provided; Fig. 2 is a side elevation of such standard form window channel with a portion or section thereof modified by having supplemental side walls associated therewith; Fig. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view of said channel, including the modified portion thereof, the view being taken on the line 33, Fig. 5; Fig. 4 is a bottom plan view of the modified portion or section of said channel; and Figs. 5 and 6 are cross sectional views of said channel, the views being taken on the lines 5-5 and 6-6, Fig. 2, respectively.

The portion 1 of the automobile body shown in Fig. 1 includes a suitable door 2 provided in its upper portion with a suitable window opening 3 adapted to be opened and closed by a suitable sashless glass window 5 mounted in said door for vertical sliding movement. The windshield (not shown) of said automobile is rearwardly inclined and in order to give the front edge portion 7 of the top part of said window a corresponding rearward inclination, the upper front comer portion of said window is cut-away or removed, so that the top part of said window, from the point marked X (Fig. l) to the top edge 8 thereof, is of gradually decreasing width.

To properly guide and support the vertically movable'rear edge portion 10 of said window and the vertically movable front edge portion 12 of the bottom part of said window, standard form window channel, having side walls of uniform and regular depth, is satisfactory, such as the channel disclosed in my co-pending application Ser. No. 594,040, filed February 19, 1932, to which application reference may be had, if desired.

So far as description is here necessary, said standard form channel includes, as best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, a generally channel shaped resilient sheet metal member having a base 15 and a pair of generally parallel side walls 16 terminating at their outer longitudinal edge portions in longitudinally disposed beads 1'7 which in turn terminate in inwardly extending, laterally converging window-engaging flanges 18. Preferably and as shown, all parts of said channel shaped member, except the beads 1'7 thereof, are enclosed in a suitable covering 20, of vulcanized rubber or the like, and in order to further cushion the window 5 which this channel shaped member is adapted to receive, the rubber covered inner surface of the base 15 thereof is provided with a suitable longitudinally disposed cushioning pad 21, of felt or the like, and the window-engaging surfaces of the two rubber covered flanges 18 of said member are provided with longitudinally disposed cushioning pads 22, which also are of felt or the like.

To guide and support the vertically movable rear edge portion 10 of window 5, a strip 25 of such standard form window channel is suitably installed or mounted in the door 2 along the rear edge portion thereof, and to guide and support the front edge portion of said window, a strip 30 of such standard form channel is suitably installed or mounted in said door along the front edge portion thereof, all as clearly shown in Fig. 1.

Said rear channel strip 25, without modification thereof or additions thereto, is quite suitable for guiding and supporting the vertically movable rear edge portion 10 of window 5, and the lower section of said front channel strip 30, without modification thereof or additions thereto, is quite suitable for guiding and supporting the vertically movable front edge portion 12 of the bottom part of said window. However, due to the inclination of the front edge portion 7 of the top part of said window, the upper section of said front channel strip 30 is not suitable, without additions thereto, for properly guiding and supporting said inclined front edge portion 7. Therefore, to make said strip upper section suitable for such purpose, suitable supplemental-side walls 36 are provided for the side walls 16 thereof.

In the embodiment of the invention here illustrated, said supplemental side walls 36 which terminate at their outer longitudinal edge portions in longitudinally disposed open beads 37 are integral parts of a simple sheet metal member which is of generally channel shape so that it also has a base 35. As best shown in Figs. 5 and 6, said supplemental channel shaped member is adapted to receive or contain the upper section 'of the front standard form channel strip 30, said supplemental member having a width just great enough for this purpose.

Inasmuch as the top part of window 5 is of gradually decreasing width, from the point marked X (Fig. 1) to the top edge 8 thereof, the two supplemental side walls 36 for at least a part of their length are of gradually increasing depth. In order to avoid the necessity of having said supplemental side walls of increasing depth throughout their entire length (and such avoidance is desirable for visibility and appearance purposes, etc.) the top portion of the upper section of the front channel strip 30, and likewise, of course, the top portion of the supplemental channel shaped member, are bent slightly rearwardly, as at 40. As a result, the depth of those parts of the supplemental side walls 36 lying above said bend does not increase but remains constant, and yet the beaded outer longitudinal edge portions 37 of said parts continue in alignment with the beaded outer longitudinal edge portions 3'1 of those parts of said supplemental side walls lying below said bend, all as is clearly shown in Figs. 2 and 3 and as will be readily understood.

In the installation, as shown in Fig. 1, of the present improvedchannel, the beaded outer longitudinal edge portions 37 of the supplemental side walls 36, which have a rearward inclination corresponding to that of the front edge portion '7 of the top part of the window 5, extend along the front edge portion of the door opening 3, with the result that the same beaded edge appearance is produced at the front edge of said opening as is produced at the rear edge of said opening by the beaded edges of the standard form rear channel stri 25;

In order to provide, in a simple and economical manner, window-engaging cushioning means at the outer longitudinal edge portions 37 of the supplemental side walls 36, the rubber and felt covered side walls 16 of the upper section of the front channel strip 30 (which strip section is associated with said supplemental side walls, as

heretofore mentioned) are severed from the rubber and felt covered base 15 of said strip section, and thereafter, said severed side walls 16, with their window-engaging flanges 18, are secured to the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental side walls. Such securement is effected, in the present embodiment of the invention, by. locating the longitudinally disposed beads 1'7 of said severed side walls in the longitudinally disposed beads 37 of said supplemental side walls as, the resiliency of the metal of said beads maintaining them in assembly or said outer heads 3'? being subjected to a crimping action or the like to cause them to securely hold said inner beads 17. This locates the laterally converging,

properly cushioned window-engaging flanges 18 119 of said severed side walls adjacent the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental side walls, in proper position to yieldingly engage, for guiding and supporting purposes, the inclined front edge portion 7 of the top part of window 5.

As best shown in Fig. 6, said severed side walls 16.

after being secured to the supplemental side walls 36, lie alongside the inner surfaces thereof and by their engagement therewith, effectively prevent tuming movement of their beads 1'7 within the supplemental side wall beads 37. Yielding movement, however, of the window-engaging flanges 18 of said severed side walls is freely permitted.

To maintain the severed channel strip base 15, with its rubber cover 20 and felt pad 21, in assembly with the base 35 of the supplemental channel member, suitable tongues 42, in the present embodiment of the invention, are punched out of the side walls 36 of said member adjacent the base 35 thereof, and said tongues are thereafter pressed or turned laterally toward each other into engagement with said severed base 15, whereby said base and the base 35 of said supplemental member are firmly maintained in.

proper assembled relation, all as clearly shown in Fig. 6.

As heretofore mentioned, due to the bending at 40 of the top portion of the supplemental channel member, thev supplemental side wall parts 36 lying above said bend do not increase in depth, as do the corresponding supplemental side wall parts lying below said bend, but said upper side wall parts remain constant in depth. A simple and inexpensive way of constructing the supplemental I channel member, therefore, is to sever or disconnect from each other the base and side wall parts of said supplemental member lying above said bend, and then to fold laterally toward each other, along the outer surface of said severed base part 35, the inner longitudinal edge portions 43 of said severed side wall parts, all'as clearly shown in Fig. 4. If said severed side wall parts are cut at an angle at their upper ends, a projecting base end portion 46 is provided, which projecting base portion can be turned downwardly along the outer surfaces of said laterally folded side wall edge portions 43, and by a crimping operation or the like, the results of which are indicated at 48, Figs. 3 and 4, the base and side wall parts of the supplemental channel member lying above the bend 40 can be securely maintained in assembled relation, all as will be readily understood.

To facilitate and to make sufficiently rigid the assembly or connection of the supplemental channel member and the upper section of the channel strip 30,saidsupplementalchannel member is provided at its lower end with a suitable extension 50, the one here shown being of integral character, of channel shape, and of such cross sectional size as to snugly receive a part of the lower section of said channel strip. The side walls of said extension, which walls are of substantially the same depth as the side walls 16 of channel strip lower section, are provided at their outer longitudinal edge portions with longitudinally disposed beads 52, which beads are continuations of the longitudinally disposed beads 37 of said supplemental member and are adapted to receive and firmly grip the longitudinally disposed beads 17 of the side walls 16 of said channel strip lower section, whereby a firm and rigid connection is easily and conveniently effected between said channel strip upper section and the supplemental channel member associated therewith for guiding and supporting the inclined front edge portion 7 of the top part of the, window 5, all as will be readily understood.

Further features of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which the invention relates.

What I claim is:

1. In a window runway or channel, a generally channel shaped sheet metal member having a base and a pair of side walls, said member intermediate its ends being longitudinally bent so that the base of the portion or section thereof lying on one side of said bend extends at an angle to the base of the portion or section thereof lying on the other side of said bend, the side walls of one of said portions or sections being severed from the base thereof and the inner longitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls being bent laterally toward each other and lying alongside the outer surface of said severed base, and means for maintaining in assembly said severed base and said laterally bent side wall edge portions.

2.- In a window runway or channel, a generally channel shaped sheet metal member having a base and a pair of side walls, said member intermediate its ends being longitudinally bent so that the base of the portion ,or section thereof lying on one side of said bend extends at an angle to the base of the portion or section thereoflying on the other side of said bend, the side walls of one of said portions or sections being severed from the base thereof and the inner longitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls being bent laterally toward each other and lying alongside the outer surface of said severed base, and means for maintaining in assembly said severed base and said laterally bent side wall portions, the severed side walls of said one section being of substantially tion being of varying depth.

3. In awindow runway or channel, a generally channel shaped sheet metal member having a base and a pair of side walls, said member intermediate its ends being longitudinally bent so that the base of the portion or section thereof lying on one side of said bend extends at an angle to the base of the portion or section thereof lying on the other side of said bend, the side walls of one of said portions or sections being severed from the base thereof and the inner longitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls being bent laterally toward each other and lying alongside the outer surface of said severed base, and means for maintaining in assembly said severed base and said laterally bent side wall edge portions, the severed side walls of said one section being of uniform depth and the side walls of said other section being of uniformly varying depth, the outer longitudinal edge portions of the side walls of both of said sections being integral and in alignment.

4. In a window runway or channel, a generally channel shaped sheet metal memberhaving a base and a pair of side walls, said member intermediate its ends being longitudinally bent so that the base of the portion or section thereof lying on one side of said bend extends at an angle to the base of the portion or section thereof lying on the other side of said bend, the side walls of one of said portions or sections being severed from the base thereof and the innerlongitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls being bent laterally toward each other and lying alongside the outer surface of said severed base, said severed base being provided at its free end with a projecting end portion which is reversely bent so as to lie alongside the outer surfaces of said laterally bent side wall edge portions, whereby said side wall edge portions are confined between said severed base and the reversely bent end portion thereof.

5. In a window runway or channel, a generally channel shaped sheet metal member having a base and a pair of side walls, said member intermediate its ends being longitudinally bent so that the base of the portion or section thereof lying on one side of said bend extends at an angle to the base of the portion or section thereof lying on the other side of said bend, the side walls of one of said portions or sections being severed from the base thereof and the inner longitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls being bent laterally toward each other and lying alongside the outer surface of said severed base, said severed base being provided at its free end with a projecting end portion which is reversely bent so as to lie alongside the outer surfaces of said laterally bent side wall edge portions, whereby said side wall edge portions are confined between said severed base and the reversely bent end portion thereof, and means for maintaining in assembly said severed base, the reversely bent end portion thereof and the laterally bent inner longitudinal edge portions of said severed side walls.

6. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom and provided at their outer longitudinal edge portions with longitudinally disposed beads, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure associated with the base thereof and provided at their outer longitudinal edge portions with longitudinally disposed beads with which are secured in assembly the longitudinally disposed beads of said structure side walls.

7. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom and being of uniform depth, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure associated. with the base thereof and having said structure side walls secured thereto adjacent .the outer longitudinal edges thereof, said supplemental side walls being of varying depth, with the minimum depth thereof at least as great as the structure side walls.

8. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure, said structure side walls being associated with the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental side walls and said structure base being associated with the inner longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental side walls by laterally -bent, base-engaging tongues with which said supplemental side walls are provided.

9. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped main window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom, and a generally channel-shaped structure for said main structure and having a base and a pair of window-receiving side walls of greater depth than that of said main structure side walls, said main structure side walls being associated with the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental structure side walls.

10. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped main window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom, and a generally channel-shaped supplemental structure for said main structure and having a base and a pair of window-receiving sidewalls of greater depth than that of said main structure side walls, said main structure side walls being associated with the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental structure side walls and said main structure base being associated with the base of said supplemental structure.

11. Awindow runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped main window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom, and a generally channel-shaped supplemental structure forysaid main structure and having a base and a pair of window-receiving side walls of greater depth than that of said main structure side walls, said main structure side walls being associated with the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental structure side walls and said main structure base being associated with said supplemental structure base, the side walls of said supplemental structure, adjacent the base thereof, being provided with integral means for maintaining said main structure base in association with said supplemental structure base;

12. A window runway or channel, comprising 9. generally channel-shaped main window-receiv ing structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls separated therefrom, and a generally channel-shaped supplemental structure for said main structure and having a base and .a pair of window-receiving side walls of greater depth than that of said main structure side walls.

said main structure side walls being associated with the outer longitudinal edge portions of said supplemental structure side walls and said main structure base being associated with said supplemental structure base, the side walls of said supplemental structure, adjacent the base thereof, being provided with longitudinally disposed, laterally bent, integral tongues for engaging said main structure base and thereby maintaining it inassociation with the base of said supplemental structure.

13. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of side walls separated therefrom and comprising generally parallel window-receiving portions and converging window-engaging flange portions, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure and associated with the base thereof, the generally parallel portions of said structure side walls being suitably secured in assembly with said supplemental side walls.

14. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of side walls separated therefrom and comprising generally parallel window-receiving portions and converging window-engaging flange portions, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure and associated with the base thereof, said structure side walls at the junctions of their parallel and converging portions being suitably secured to said supplemental side walls.

15. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of side walls separated therefrom and comprising generally parallel portions connected by longitudinally disposed beads with converging window-engaging flange portions, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure and associated with the base thereof, said supplemental side walls being provided at their outer longitudinal edge portions with longitudinally disposed beads with which are secured in assembly the longitudinally disposed beads of said structure side walls.

16. A window runway or channel, comprising a generally channel-shaped window-receiving structure having a base and a pair of windowengaging side walls of uniform depth, and a pair of supplemental window-receiving side walls for said structure and associated with the base thereof, said supplemental side Walls for a portion of their length being of the same depth as said structure side walls and for another portion of their length being of increased depth, those portions of said structure side walls associated with those portions of said supplemental side walls of increased depth being separated from said structure base and being suitably secured to said sup: plemental side walls adjacent the outer longitudinal edge portions thereof.

JAMES S. REID. 

